Love and Christmas Gifts
by Kiwi Ootori
Summary: Orihime goes over to the Kurosaki household for Christmas.


**I do not own Bleach, Kubo does. That was a disclaimer, now, please enjoy~**

Orihime fidgeted nervously as she waited for one of the Kurosaki family to answer the door. In her hands she held four small gifts, one for each of the family. Ichigo had told her that she was invited to his house for Christmas, since she usually spent it alone, and she had immediately gone out and gotten presents for each. They weren't much, but she wanted to show them her appreciation for inviting her over. She glanced down at the presents as she heard footsteps coming towards the door. Would they be enough? Did they really want her over? Did she look okay? She had almost made up her mind to turn around and walk away when the door opened to reveal Ichigo, wearing shorts and a worn t-shirt. He grinned at her sheepishly as he stepped to the side to let her in.

"Sorry, Inoue, I just got up. Come on in, everyone else is up and ready." She smiled brightly, a light blush on her cheeks, as she followed him into the room.

"Thank you for inviting me Kurosaki-kun! I wasn't sure what I'd be doing this year, I'm glad I get to spend it with you and your family! are you sure they're okay with me being here?" He smiled down at her and her heart jumped.

"Yeah, my dad's the one who pushed it the most. We're all glad you're here for Christmas." She looked down, pushing back the emotions threatening to explode, and then she was all but knocked over by a young girl.

"Orihime-chan! You're here!" Yuzu smiled up at her, donned in a Christmas apron and a santa hat. "I'm so glad you decided to come! Do you want to help me with the food?" Orihime laughed and steadied herself.

"Of course! Where should I put these?" She held out the presents in her arms.

"Just put them under the tree…" She turned around and smiled when she saw Karin standing behind her.

"Okay! You've really grown, Karin-chan!" The dark-haired girl shrugged and took a cookie off the table, despite Yuzu's protests.

"Yeah, I guess. Nothing big…" Orihime set the presents down by the tree and stood up straight.

"I think it's something big, you're becoming a woman!" Karin flushed and shook her head.

"I don't think it's anything big, really…" The auburn-haired girl giggled and hugged her.

"You'll think it's better later on, trust me!" Behind them, Ichigo cleared his throat, and Orihime looked up.

"Inoue, can you come up and help me with something really fast?" He glanced at his youngest sister. "I wont keep her long, Yuzu." Orihime nodded and walked over.

"Of course! I'll be right back!" Nervously, she followed him up to his room. What did he want? And with him dressed like that? Given, she'd seen him like that before, but still! He was getting dressed! He opened the door to his room and as he turned, she blushed suddenly. "Um, um, Kurosaki-kun, w-what did you need my help with?" She felt shaky and her stomach felt weird. He probably had no such ideas but she couldn't help it! He stepped inside and gestured to a few unwrapped gifts on his bed.

"I didn't have any time to wrap them and you probably know how well I wrap. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind helping me with them?" She breathed a sigh of relief and turned to face him.

"Easy enough, don't worry about it!" She turned again and walked to the bed, picking up the wrapping paper and sitting down. A minute later, the bed sank a bit and she looked up to see him shirtless. "K-Kurosaki-kun?"

"Yeah?" He got back up and walked to his closet. "I'll help as soon as I can, let me get dressed." She flushed deeply and averted her eyes, looking back down at the gift she was wrapping and trying to concentrate on that. He was getting dressed in the same room as her! Quickly, she finished the gift in front of her and focused herself on making the bow. The bed sank down again and this time he had on a shirt and a pair of jeans. Her blush died a bit, and she relaxed, now knowing he was completely dressed. Without talking, she tied the bow and handed it to him.

"One down! Two more to go!" He chuckled and placed the gift on the bed beside him.

"Here, let me help you with the next ones." His fingers were surprisingly nimble and they were finished within a matter of minutes.

"There! The last bow! Yuzu-chan will love this gift, you make a good big brother!" She smiled brightly, trying to hide the disappointment in her eyes. She had hoped there would be a present for her in there somewhere. He stood up and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I try to be a good brother. I figured this would make up for the lack of time I spend with them." He walked back over to his closet and she turned, just in case. A moment later she was staring at a small, messily wrapped present. She looked up at him and he looked away sheepishly. "I tried to wrap it myself. I wanted it to be special, but it didn't turn out too good." He placed it in her hands and she tried to hold back the tears threatening to spill over.

"Kurosaki-kun, you didn't have to…"

"I did have to. Can you open it up here? You have another one downstairs and I kinda wanted this one to be special." Gently, she undid the bow and took off the wrapping to reveal a small box. She glanced at him before opening it, and once she saw what was inside, the tears began to fall. It was a necklace and matching ring, both diamonds.

"K-Kurosaki-kun! They're both beautiful!" She wiped a tear away and swallowed. "I… You didn't have to do this!"

"I did. I felt like… Like I've been neglecting you, and I thought maybe this would help you accept my feelings." He looked her right in the eye, "I love you, Inoue. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize it and I kept you waiting, but I'm a stubborn teen guy and I tried to get away from it. I didn't want you to get hurt because of me, that's what I told myself. But I'm done running away and I want to ask you to go out with me. This ring is a promise ring. It's my way of saying even though we're going to go through things, and I may not always be right there, I love you, and I'll love you forever." By now, the tears were overflowing and she was bright red. He reached up a hand to dry away her tears and she spoke.

"I love you too, Kurosaki-kun. I always have and I always will. I'm so happy, I'm sorry, I just cant stop crying!" He smiled and took her into his arms.

"It's fine, you can cry. We might need to get downstairs before my dad thinks we've eloped or something." She giggled and wiped away her tears.

"Then let's go!" He grinned at her and ruffled her hair, then picked up the presents and she opened the door.

"Ichi-nii? Come on! The foods ready!"

"We're coming, we're coming!" He walked down the stairs and Orihime slipped the necklace around her neck and followed. Maybe, just maybe, she and Ichigo would have their own family. And she would feel this happiness all the time. She smiled at the thought and Ichigo turned around. "Inoue? You coming?"

"Yeah!"

I tried, guys. Hope you liked?


End file.
